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Artifacts
Artifacts (not to be confused with the still-active Dom'Kavash Artifact) are the remains of ancient alien civilizations that developed while life on Earth was just emerging from the seas. Most Artifacts are devoid of any alien power source, and are little more than inert chunks of engraved crystals, providing the wealthy upper class of Sirius with a new status symbol. However, it is rumored that artifacts provided the inspiration for Jump Gate and Trade Lane technology, as well as other breakthroughs in shipbuilding technology. During the events of the Single Player Plot, political leaders such as Liberty's President Jacobi have seen fit to declare artifacts illegal, and they are viewed as contraband in all major houses. Artifacts are primarily harvested by the Corsairs from systems in the Edge Worlds, who then sell them to the Junkers and Hogosha for distribution in the colonies. The Order has successfully engineered these artifacts to be used as weapons against the Nomad threat by harvesting Nomad power cells from abandoned alien structures. These cells are extremely rare, however, and for all practical purposes the remaining artifacts in Sirius are dead, although active rocks have been found on planets such as Pygar. Notes Large amounts of Artifacts can be found in the numerous wrecks surrounding the first Unknown (or Nomad) Jumphole in the Omicron Gamma system. However, large numbers of both Corsair ships and Nomad ships are in that area. Be cautious when entering that area if you are not friendly with the Corsairs. << ILLEGAL IN LIBERTY >> Trade Route Basics *Best buy: Cadiz Base, Omega 5 - $135 *Best sell: Planet Manhattan, New York - $1,282 Bases Selling (by lowest price) *Cadiz Base, Omega 5 - $135 *Freistadt Base, Omega 7 - $135 *Planet Crete, Omicron Gamma - $162 *Elbich Mining Facility, Omega 7 - $188 *Freeport 9, Omicron Theta - $188 *Briesen Mining Facility, Omega 7Daumann Heavy Construction- $202 *Yanagi Depot, Sigma 13 -Junkers $350 *Luxury Liner Hawaii, Sigma 19 - $364 *Kabukicho Depot, New Tokyo - $675 *Kagoshima Depot, Kyushu - $715 *Kreuzberg Depot, New Berlin System - $742 *Trafalgar Base, New London - $945 *Leiden Base, Galileo - $1080 *Padua Base, Galileo - $1093 *Rochester Base, New York - $1215 Smuggler Tip If you get discovered running contraband, simply dock with the next Trade Lane or Jump Gate. You will usually manage to escape. If you are able to jump or reach trade lane space before the police go hostile to you, the police on the other side will not be hostile to you (though they very well may initiate a second search). The faster you are in getting to the trade lane or jump gate, the more likely this tactic will work. News LIBERTY IMPOSES ARTIFACT BAN: President Jacobi announced today that, based on the appearance of new, unstudied, and potentially dangerous classes of Artifacts in Liberty, she is temporarily suspending all Artifact trading, pending further investigation. Despite initial protests, she has assured trade union reps that they will be adequately compensated and that, once evaluated, regulated trading will resume. Authorities have asked all citizens to comply with this temporary precaution until more can be learned. 'WHAT'S WRONG WITH ARTIFACTS?: '''NEW TOKYO -- Many private Artifact dealers are going out of business because of Liberty's newest Sirius-wide campaign against Artifacts. A recent poll shows that 82 percent of the New Tokyo populace regards the ban on the Artifact trade as unnecessary and ridiculous. "We are the only ones suffering," remarked Hayato Fujimoto, a New Tokyo Artifact dealer who has filed for bankruptcy. "Everyone is still buying just as many Artifacts, but with our government bowing to the foreigners' demands we can no longer do it openly, so legitimate business suffers." ARTIFACT PRICES DROP FOR DISTRIBUTORS: SIGMA-19 -- It looks like the profit margins on Artifacts are increasing, which should delight many of our distributors in New Tokyo. The GMG was recently cut out of the Artifact trade between the Hogosha and the Corsairs, resulting in better prices for our organization. Contact was made with Corsair representatives on the Hawaii, and our negotiators offered the pirates more than the GMG was paying them for the Artifacts, but less than the Miners Guild was charging the Hogosha. It looks like everyone will profit, except the GMG. Rumors ''"Have you heard about the artifact ban? Jacobi can pretend like there's some security concern, but in the end it's all about Liberty getting their cut of a market they've been dying to get into. If they make it a controlled substance - and then later tax the hell out of it - they'll get their chance." - Kent Raffray, Deep Space Engineering, Planet Manhattan Category:Commodity Category:Contraband